BORIS JOHNSON will be blocked from using Brussels' cash to fund the UK's rescue package for workers impacted by the coronavirus crisis.

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The Prime Minister has sanctioned an unprecedented scheme to protect millions of pay as you earn and self-employed workers worth tens of billions of pounds. And with the European Commission also preparing for a huge surge in unemployment, Ursula von der Leyen has unveiled her own rescue package. The bloc’s most senior official is hoping to borrow £88.5billion to help cover lost earnings to allow companies who have lost business because of the global pandemic to drastically reduce their workers’ hours.

However, It emerged that the programme has been discussed at meetings in January where British officials had been present.

Mr Gove said: “There was some communication confusion.

“I don’t know all the details of that, but I do know having talked to senior figures in the NHS that there’s nothing that participating in that scheme would have allowed us to do that we have not been able to do ourselves.”